Page 2 of Natalie0210 Travel Blog Posts


South America » Brazil » Bahia » Lençóis November 10th 2009

Hello all! I greet you happy but fluey on a warm Tuesday afternoon in Lençois. I´ve been sick for over a week now. I´m finding it damn near impossible to shake and I don´t know why - maybe the Brazilians have a stronger strand of flu here? It´s probably just yet another thing that I´m not used to about living abroad, like insects and odd fruits and the weather... I could do with taking some days off the properly recuperate, but the chances of that are slim to none, seeing as I´m now the only volunteer at the project. Work is extremely tiring. I have had to implement a kind of points system with one of the groups just to get through the hour with them, so its tough going. Fortunately the rest of the groups ... read more

South America » Brazil » Bahia » Lençóis November 5th 2009

Hello all! Sorry about the lack of contact, life has been hectic here lately and I´ve not had time to pop down and use the internet, so here is a bit of an update. Life here is still going well. The weather has improved massively and taken my mood with it. I´m always so much happier when its sunny outside - and believe me, Brazilian sunshine tops it all! The job is hard and has just got harder. The other volunteer living in the house, Jude, has had a falling out with Olivia and left today. And Gabriel, who worked just the afternoons, has had to increase his hours spent on his doctorate so will no longer be working. Which means its just little old me, all day everyday, and living in the house alone again. ... read more

South America » Brazil » Bahia » Lençóis October 20th 2009

Hi all! Another exciting week here in Lençois. The kids decided to behave themselves a little better, you´ll be glad to here. We have a new volunteer, who is now living with me in the project house. He is a 28 year old from Recife in the north of Brazil. He is really nice, but for now I reserve my judgement as to how well the housing situation will work. At least he is a clean freak, so I don´t have to housetrain him! Things continue to go well for me here, and my Portuguese is coming on in leaps and bounds. I´m even getting some of the local slang down to a tee! The highlight of my week was a trip to the nearby town of Igatu - a pretty little place with only 400 ... read more

South America » Brazil » Bahia » Lençóis October 13th 2009

Hello all! Sorry for the silence over past weeks, I´ve been very busy here but I´m alive, well and happy! I celebrated my 21st birthday on the 2nd October and my friends here threw me a surprise party on the banks of the river, with cake, candles, balloons and a few caipirinhas too! I´d had a lovely day with the kids, Friday is games day so we played a big game of twister and it was all nice and relaxed. Two of my friends also took me out for dinner so I have been really spoilt lately! Work as been tough too. I´m definately past the honeymoon period with the kids - I´m not a novelty anymore so they don´t always behave themselves as they should. One of them bit me the other day. But generally ... read more

South America September 22nd 2009

So, I´m now into my third week here and things keep getting better. I´ve started to widen my circle of acquaintances and now have people I can call friends. Went to my first party here on Sunday night - and let me tell you, Brazilian people know how to have a good time! It was really good fun and the people I met were all lovely. The weather continues to be amazing. I got a little sunburnt at the weekend so I´m being sensible about not sunbathing for a couple of days, which is torture because its SO HOT! The kids were very rowdy yesterday and I went to bed exhausted. Tomorrow I´m taking them to plant some trees - we are trying to encourage them to have respect for their environment, but I can´t say ... read more

South America September 15th 2009

Its my second week in Lençois and things are starting to get a little easier. My portuguese, though still woefully inadequate is improving as my confidence grows. The town is a very pretty colonial town in the region of Bahia - famous for cachaça rum, african influences and capoeira (a martial art meets dance fusion). The surrounding national park - Chapada Diamantina - is very beautiful and I intend to go on several treks when I´m a little more settled. I work with the kids 9-11.30 and 2-4.30 everyday, doing basic lessons and helping them with their homework. Many of them struggle to read and write and lots have personal or behavioural problems and come from difficult backgrounds. Therefore this period is very important so that I can build a relationship of trust with them. the ... read more

South America » Brazil » Bahia September 5th 2009

Hi everybody! Just wanted to write this and fill you in a little on my first couple of days. I arrived safe and sound in Lençois, my new home on Friday morning. Since then I have met soem of the kids Im going to be working with, seen a capoeira (martial arts meets dance) display and bought a pair of Havaiana flip flops, so Im fitting right in. Ive also swum in the nearby rivers and pools and Im generally enjoying settling in. Hope all is well with everyone xxxxxxxx... read more




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